"Ask Vic" will publish on Monday and Thursday through the offseason.

Mikey from Tallahassee, FL
At the end of a long day, what makes Vic smile?
It's knowing I've been a nice person.

Dave from Savage, MN
Did you read Cliff Christl's (story on) Bill Austin? Good stuff about the offensive line and the power sweep under Lombardi. There's a picture of the Packers coaching staff: Lombardi and five guys. Amazing when you see the quality of play now with 20 coaches. Is bigger better?
Last season's Packers coaching staff included Matt LaFleur and 21 other guys, four of whom were quality control coaches and another who was generically designated an offensive assistant. Is bigger better? Not when you lay the egg the Packers did in San Francisco. Early in my time covering the Steelers, Chuck Noll's staff included Dick Hoak, Dan "Bad Rad" Radakovich, Lionel Taylor, George Perles, Woody Widenhofer and the great Bud Carson. Coach Noll was head coach, offensive coordinator and special teams coordinator. It's the smallest and probably the best coaching staff I ever covered. The Jaguars are hiring so many coaches they may not be able to fit them all on the plane to London.

Dirk from Hanover, Germany
In the context of player safety, do you see a development where tackling is eventually forbidden and the NFL plays a kind of electronic flag football (a play is ended when a defender triggers one or more sensors sewn into the clothes of the ball-carrier)?
I see a day when the ball is snapped and all of the players begin vibrating and moving in different directions.

Billy from Verona, WI
Vic, have you ever seen players become tough as they developed in the NFL, or is being tough an intrinsic trait?
Greg Lloyd comes to mind. He was a media darling in his first couple of training camps. He was Mr. Nice Guy, but he kept getting hurt so he decided to become Mr. Mean Guy, and he never got hurt again. Nice isn't good in football.

Jonathan from Southern Pines, NC
Care to detail more how Jacksonville is a legitimate NFL market? They can't even sell out the stadium or come close, and it's been that way for years. Now they're giving off multiple games to London. Are their local TV ratings any good? It just looks bad.
The Jacksonville TV ratings were always good. Interest in football was never the issue; lack of market size and disposable income were the problems early on. The Jaguars bear a large portion of the blame. They made short-term decisions that made their franchise bid look good to the NFL, but damaged the long-term future of the franchise. Ten thousand club seats was a ridiculous number. In my opinion, the market has grown in population and in commerce to the point there's no excuse for not being able to support 10 home dates a year. It's a one-sport town and there's no doubt in my mind the Jaguars should be a hot ticket in a market as vibrant as Jacksonville and without competition for the entertainment dollar from any other major league team. Stop with the pools and the promotions and put a team on the field that captures the heart of the Jacksonville football fan.

Lori from Brookfield, WI
Vic, female coaches have been added to the staff on at least two NFL teams. What are your thoughts on this dynamic and its impact on the game?
It's not an issue for me because women don't play the game, therefore, they weren't being exploited. I sense no wrong being righted. African-Americans were being exploited as players until they began being hired as coaches.

John from Garnet Valley, PA
During your years covering the NFL, what rule change had the biggest impact on the way the game is played today?
The 1978 rules change that allows offensive linemen to use their hands in blocking changed nearly everything about how the game is played. All of the techniques of line play changed. Pad level, once the foundation of line play, has become unimportant; that's why nobody can convert short yardage with any consistency. Mobility and creating space have been replaced by sliding and walling up. The explosion in the size of offensive linemen is the greatest change. I don't think the league saw that coming and I don't think this super sizing has been good for the game.

Tom from New York, NY
I'd like two preseason games, seventeen regular-season games and a second bye week for an 18-week season. Problem solved?
The league did two bye weeks in 1993. It was deemed a bad idea. The regular season ended after the first of the year. Coaches didn't like having to re-start a second time. The TV menu was weak twice that season. Be that as it may, there were only 28 teams back then; today's 32-team league would offer more schedule strength during the bye weeks. It might be worth a try.

Doug from Union Grove, WI
During the offseason, do you ever get as tired of us as I do?
I especially enjoy doing the column in the offseason because we tend to get into some deep-thought issues that challenge our perspective and help us re-discover the past. What I don't enjoy is the constant pounding on the same tired subject. There always seems to be one issue every year. Last year it was Mike McCarthy. This year it's the need at wide receiver.

Craig from Cedarburg, WI
Do you see the NFL ever expanding to 36 teams?
I think it's likely to happen if the league expands internationally. As it is, I don't know where the league could expand in the U.S. What if we're headed for another population migration, to escape the effects of climate change? Expansion? What about contraction?

Jared from Sugar City, ID
Vic, when did player celebrations become a thing, and how has it changed the feel of the game?
Homer Jones threw down the ball as he crossed the goal line, and the celebration generation was born. Homer's celebration was spontaneous. Today's celebrations are rehearsed. I think they're pukey. They make the players look silly.

Ryan from Freedom, WI
I have seen reports of the Bears thinking about trading Mack to the Redskins for a second overall pick, most likely to draft a new quarterback. What are your thoughts on this?
Reports? Have any of those reports mentioned his $47.8 million dead money hit in what would be the final year of the CBA, which means the Bears would have to bear the whole hit in 2020?

Douglas from Binghamton, NY
The Packers just completed a sweep of the NFC North, made it to the NFC championship game, and beat the Seahawks along the way. How is this season a disappointment by any metric? Yeah, they got thumped on the road against a team so loaded they nearly beat the Chiefs with Jimmy G at QB, but what other team would have beat the 49ers at home?
Hooray!

Dave from Franklin, WI
I don't necessarily think this column needs "Nice Vic." Do you think you're sensing more anger because people are upset you've dropped to two publishings a week for the offseason?
No, it's because that's who we are; we're angry people. We're angry at people who have a different opinion and we're especially angry at the "fake news" media.

​Brad from Basalt, CO
Vic, I hear about all of Blake Martinez' flaws at linebacker, but he also led the league in tackles this year and was second last year. So a new and better inside linebacker will do what exactly? And does this reflect poorly on the rest of the defense or just the other linebackers?
Martinez is taking the fall for the run-defense's failures and that's not fair. Remember, Kyle Shanahan said he had targeted the Packers' edge players; it amazed me Shanahan revealed that information. Frankly, the pass rush was the only thing I liked about the defense last season. For a team with a rush as fierce as the Packers, I thought the pass defense was also a disappointment, especially when you consider the Packers played games against three backup quarterbacks and two rookies. The Packers need to continue their focus on improving the talent on defense.

"Ask Vic" will publish on Monday and Thursday through the offseason.

Jeff from Miami, FL
I just wanted to see if I understand your point. Are you saying you need to pick the big guys first because controlling the line of scrimmage means controlling the game?
Big guys come at a premium, and the popular belief is you have to get them early in the draft. Seventeen linemen were selected in the first round of the 2019 draft, as opposed to two wide receivers and one running back.

Chris from Bozeman, MT
Vic, why do the Packers love having 8-10 draft picks per year? They rarely use them as trade capital to acquire more talent earlier in the draft. I’d rather have four picks in the top 100 than one or two and eight scrubs. You only have 53 spots. What am I missing?
I'm not opposed to trading up, and I think the Packers should've done more of it during the Rodgers era. What you might be missing about the late-round picks and why the Packers and a lot of teams value them is this: When you hit on one of those guys, it's four years of minimum-wage labor, and that's how you keep your cap healthy. Those are the guys that "pay" the quarterback's salary.

Dan from Toledo, OH
It seems we’ve figured out Brian Gutekunst’s strategy. Identify a weak position and acquire multiple players to fit. WR deficit? Draft three of them. No edge rushers? Acquire three. Poor safety play? Let's get two new ones. How would you rate him as a GM so far?
Shotgun approach? It's worked for teams down through the years, but I'm not a fan of it because I think you end up drafting the same guy two and three times. In 2008, the Jaguars thought they were one player away, a pass rusher. So, they traded up in the first round and drafted Derrick Harvey and then traded up in the second round and drafted Quentin Groves. Five extra draft picks were spent on the same guy, so to speak, and neither Harvey nor Groves was the player the Jaguars needed. In 1999, the Jaguars were thought to need a cornerback and a defensive lineman. They spent seven of their eight picks on those two positions, and none of the players they picked after the first round was the player they needed. I'm not ready to pigeon-hole Gutekunst after just two drafts. Again, I'll tell you I think he is an outstanding evaluator of talent and I believe he is absolutely the right guy for the job.

Stephen from Jacksonville, FL
Does the NFL regret awarding a franchise to Jacksonville?
It shouldn't. Jacksonville did the NFL a great service by offering the league an option to St. Louis, which was supposed to be the pick but failed to present an acceptable plan to the league. The NFL even delayed its decision, to give St. Louis more time, but St. Louis still failed to produce an ownership plan and it left the league with no choice but to award the franchise to another city. Jacksonville was the choice and it was made with the idea the market would require time to grow into its new big-league designation. In my opinion, the market has arrived. After 25 years of growth, I think Jacksonville is a legitimate NFL market and I would hate to see the league quit on Jacksonville after 25 years of pruning and watering.

Leo from Dallas, TX
You spent years defending you weren't a company shill but had to be a true journalist. Now you have to defend that your opinions aren't the company line.
​Falls down a well, eyes go crossed. Kicked by a mule, they go back. I don't know.
​
Joe from Leland, NC
When you worked in Jacksonville, did you feel at the time the Jaguars reached for a guy when they drafted Tyson Alualu No. 10 overall?
I wasn't sure. Alualu was a late riser and it was difficult to get a feel for where he fit. I had it on good information the Steelers liked him a lot and Miami was considering taking him at No. 12 and then traded back and picked defensive tackle Jared Odrick when the Jaguars picked Alualu at 10. I also considered the possibility one of the Jaguars' attractions to Alualu is they believed they could sign him affordably. Remember, 2010 was an uncapped year and it was obvious the Jaguars were clearing their cap. Earl Thomas was available, but the Jaguars needed big guys and the premium on them is almost always greater than it is on safeties. Alualu never became a star player, but he's still in the league. If you want to criticize the Jaguars for bad drafting, Blake Bortles, Luke Joeckel and Justin Blackmon are better examples.

Robert from Orlando, FL
In the past, you used to say teams leave for stadium issues. Do you think that is still true? It seems to me market size and potential value increases are what drive moves now.
With the Raiders' move to Las Vegas, the Bills would seem to be the only team in the league with a stadium issue. Stadiums are no longer the issue they once were because the NFL has just completed a 25-year stadium building boom. All but a handful of teams in the league have moved into a new stadium during that time, and most of the others have conducted expensive renovation to existing stadiums. The Bills need to upgrade their stadium and the Jacksonville market has come into question recently, otherwise, the NFL is more stable right now than it has been since the Colts left Baltimore and the crab hit the fan.

Scott from Milwaukee, WI
If wide receiver isn't the problem for the Packers, then what needs do you perceive they have?
This is a trick question, right? Seriously, the Packers fan base has the worst case of wide receiver fever I've ever witnessed. I can remember the crowd at training camp cheering wide receivers catching passes against air. I had never seen anything like that. I'd hear a cheer and I'd look around the field to see what I had missed. I don't think this is a good column for you because I'm more concerned about the 49ers throwing eight passes and beating the Packers' brains in than I am about finding a complement to Davante Adams.

Richard from Jacksonville, FL
The taxpayer money that went into that stadium and those TV screens, and Khan can then just take two games away from the city like that. It's embarrassing what we let the rich get away with.
Art Rooney bought the Steelers franchise for $3,200. Until 1970, his teams played in a baseball park and a college football stadium. The Steelers' games were broadcast on an FM radio station (I didn't even know what an FM radio was) until the Pirates' season ended. The Packers played in a high school stadium. These days, the Rams are building a stadium that'll cost $5 billion and the NFL chases the World Series around the dial, so to speak. That's how dramatic the NFL's rise to popularity has been. I get what you're saying, Richard, but Jacksonville was awarded one of 32 pieces of gold and the cost of losing its piece would be devastating. Jaguars fans must find a way to put aside their bitterness, support that team and keep it in Jacksonville. I would also add this: Shad Khan owes Jacksonville a winner. It's not enough to spend money and pass out titles. It's your team. Run it!

Steven from Kimberly, WI
Why should losing teams have a chance to reverse what happened for the previous 58 minutes of the game? Because of "the tradition, history, memories and emotions that go with (the) league."
We're in a player-safety movement and the game is changing in a multitude of ways in pursuit of less danger. The onside kick might be the most dangerous play in football. One of the most frightening injuries I ever witnessed occurred on an onside kick in a game in Cincinnati. The outcome of the game had been decided. Riverfront Stadium was empty and the sound of Jaguars cornerback Dave Thomas' leg breaking reverberated throughout the stadium. It sounded like wood breaking. In 1909, handles were sewn into the pants of ball-carriers so they could be used as battering rams, and 26 young men died that season. Fortunately, Teddy Roosevelt led a movement to save the game. Football has always had to deal with the effects of its dangerous nature, and it's dealing with it again by legislating against kickoffs. Maybe you could say that's part of the tradition, history, memories and emotions that go with the game.

Henry from Jacksonville, FL
Did Dan Marino have the smoothest throwing motion you've ever seen? Any other notable throwers of the football without the recognition?
When Marino was a freshman at Pitt, Jackie Sherrill said to him, "Son, whatever you do, don't let anybody change your style on how you throw the football." Marino and Bert Jones had the most perfect throwing motions I've ever seen.

Jak from Devils Lake, ND
You are a walking contraction. "That's my opinion. This is also my column." So much for "it's the fans' column."
Contraction? Do you mean contradiction? I think my words were "the readers (fans) write the column," which they do because they ask the questions that determine the subject matter of the column. I'm sensing anger in my inbox. I think it's time for "Nice Vic" to return. Maybe we could have a "You Said Day," too.

Dan from Waupun, WI
Should we have a history month for every skin color in America? I am for every color every day. Treat all with respect.
I like that.

"Ask Vic" will publish on Monday and Thursday through the offseason.

Craig from Cedarburg, WI
If offense wins championships, why have the Packers placed such a heavy emphasis in the draft and in free agency on defense?
Because defense loses championships.

Jason from Oneida, WI
I have been a reader of yours since your early days with the Packers. I continue to do so for your knowledge of the game that I love so much. I now have another. Thank you for your response to Sandy from Texas. You are spot on when it comes to this culture vs. tradition controversy. I am a descendant and my wife, children, mother and grandmother are enrolled Oneida Nation citizens. From my perspective, the majority of Tribal citizens that are active participants in our culture do not support mascots and are working to end the practice. At one point in time I was naive to my Native heritage and felt indifferent to the mascot issue until I had an experience that changed my life. In high school in the early '90's, my football team was preparing for homecoming against another local school with Indians as their mascot (they still do). In the parade there was a float that had writing "Kill the Indians" and "Scalp the Indians" as well as drawings with a male Indian figure with arrows in his head. It bothered me even though I was not raised in my culture. I asked myself is that how my classmates see me? They were ignorant to how it made me feel. I can only imagine now as the father of two beautiful and impressionable children how something like that might make them feel knowing they have been raised to respect and appreciate where they came from and who they are. These mascots and the fallout from them make many of our children feel as if they are less than their white classmates. I now ask those in support of keeping Native mascots if they believe keeping athletic traditions going (Redskins, Braves, Chiefs, Indians) is more important than protecting the well-being of children whose self-identity is derived through their culture?
The answer to your question is obvious to any caring person.

John from Austin, TX
Not a song-and-dance kind of guy? What if the halftime show could feature Sinatra?
Sinatra could sing but he couldn't dance, so I'd probably watch a little. I don't like dancing.

Sue from Pittsburgh, PA
My husband and I are having our first child and it will be named Vic.
It's a good name for a kid from Pittsburgh because not even the Pittsburgh accent can screw it up.

Zachary from Jacksonville, FL
Do any OTs fit at the end of round one or the front end of the second?
I asked Tony Pauline what the tackle crop looks like. He said, "Terrific. At least five first-round picks and eight top 45 picks." It looks like a good year to get a big guy late in the first round.

David from Rochester, MN
You said: "A visitor should never ask, 'Who's this guy?' ... But Vainisi and Rooney are unlikely to be considered for election because most people don't know who they are." You're kind of arguing against yourself, Vic, although I understand your intention.
You omitted that I said "the contributor category is a mistake." It's a mistake because those in the contributor category aren't famous. Polian and Wolf are notable in the present, but their "fame" will fade, just as Vainisi's and Rooney's has.

Jerry from Savannah, GA
Vic, how long are you going to avoid talking about the XFL?
They just began play. Couldn't it wait until then? I watched a little of two games on Saturday. It looked like a minor league NFL. The plays are the same; it's more basketball on grass. I just spent five months watching football -- as I've written, this wasn't one of my favorite seasons -- and I'd like to take a break from it. My opinion of the XFL? At first glance, it can provide a fix for those who can't live without football. What it can't provide is the true allure of the NFL. It's not plays or players. It's brand! It's Lambeau Field. It's the Steelers' logo on the right side only. It's the tradition, history, memories and emotions that go with a league that defines life for its rabid fans. The XFL can't do that now and it won't last long enough to be able to ever do that. Empty seats and injury liability will collapse the league before it has time to root.

Keith from Roanoke, VA
What do you think of the XFL kickoff rules? It seems safer for the players and an overall worthwhile experiment for the NFL to follow.
I favor getting rid of the kickoff. Just put the ball at the 25 and let's go. Onside kicks? Why should losing teams have a chance to reverse what happened for the previous 58 minutes of the game?

Mike from Fort Wayne, IN
Just to clarify your comment about being surprised the Packers picked Gary and Savage after the free-agent acquisitions in the offseason. What if they were at the top of their board?
OK, this is a good time to go over this again; it's an annual thing. If you don't like the players available to you, move to where the player you want fits. Moving back in the order is a way of fitting yourself to the player you want and recouping the value of your original pick position. It combines the concepts of drafting BAP with drafting for need. In the first round especially, never reach and never pick a player you don't love. Brian Gutekunst said he fell in love with Rashan Gary as far back as February, and I'm inclined to believe Brian because I'm inclined to believe he could've moved out of the 12th spot if he wanted to do so. There were plenty of attractive big guys available at No. 12. Hey, he moved back for Alexander and up for Savage. It's what good GMs do. They move to where the player they want fits. I think Gary was Brian's guy. My opinion is it was overkill. That's my opinion. This is also my column.

Scott from Milwaukee, WI
If wide receiver isn't the problem for the Packers, then what needs do you perceive they have?
I don't think WR is the problem Packers fans think it is, but I agree the Packers need to add to the unit. Again, talent at that position is plentiful, so I don't think it should be prioritized above big guys and premium-position players. In my mind, the Packers need to address tackle; I think it's a big need. Tight end is a need position and, in my opinion, the Packers desperately need a run-and-hit guy on defense. They need somebody who'll put some crunch into that defense, at any position.

Tracy from Sioux Falls, SD
So what did you do with your football free Sunday?
I've begun re-reading James Michener's "Kent State." This is the 50th anniversary year. I want to make sure it's as I remember it.

James from Green Bay, WI
Why have the Packers been so consistently bad at special teams in recent years, across multiple head coaches and coordinators?
Performance on special teams is usually considered a product of the talent in the bottom half of a team's roster.

Oscar from Milwaukee, WI
Vic, linebackers are supposed to be the heart and soul of a 3-4 defense, yet, the Packers seem to be highly apathetic to the position. Why is that?
Maybe it's because they've been gaga about wide receivers. Didn't they keep eight one year? My kingdom for a linebacker.

David from Riverside, CA
I thought of you while watching a recent interview with Rock and Roll Hall of Famer (and former Eagle) Joe Walsh. I was surprised to learn he was also a student at Kent State at the time of the shootings. Did you know him?
No, but I knew Mike Goodman and he let me use his 240Z. I remember thinking to myself, "I'll never own a car like this." I was right.

John from St. Augustine, FL
Would you elaborate on why you’d be willing to share the Jaguars with London?
It's because half of something is better than none of it. I'm afraid the team will leave if the backlash of fans creates declining ticket sales.

Matt from Birmingham, UK
Tell us a story about toughness.
Jack Lambert said, "Give me 20 minutes and a six-pack and I'll go play them again." I had no doubt he would.

Casey from York, PA
How has the Sandusky scandal shaped your opinion of Joe Paterno?
Paterno chose to protect a football program he created and considered his precious child, at the expense of real children.

Jon from Wright City, MO
What is  your favorite car you owned and why?
I had a 2002 Nissan Sentra that refused to die. It might still be running. Golf clubs never fit more perfectly into the trunk of a car. I miss it.

"Ask Vic" will publish on Monday and Thursday through the offseason.

Jeff from Miami, FL
So, if the Packers had two more clones of Kenny Clark, they would have a chance to stop the run?
It would certainly help. The Packers have to surround the Smith Bros. with run-stuffers. Pass-rushers are impact players and a defense can't succeed without them.

Brandon from Helena, MT
What are your thoughts on what Deion Sanders said about the Hall of Fame becoming the Hall of "every Tom, Dick and Harry?"
You mean what are my thoughts on Sanders agreeing with me? I've been saying it for years: The Hall of Fame is being diluted. The hall of heads is beginning to look silly. A visitor should never ask, "Who's this guy?" The contributor category is a mistake, and the worst part of it is the old guys are being ignored. Jack Vainisi built the team Lombardi coached. Art Rooney Jr. drafted nine Hall of Famers in five years and just had an undrafted player, Donnie Shell, elected. That's 10 players on a team that won four Super Bowls. But Vainisi and Rooney are unlikely to be considered for election because most people don't know who they are. Instead, we induct Bill Polian, whose Colts teams won one Super Bowl and whose drafts were unspectacular. The NFL is over-commercializing the Hall of Fame. Yes, professional football is about the money, but the line has to be drawn somewhere and I think you draw it at the intersection of immortality. Something has to be sacred. Football heaven should be that place.

Dave from Jacksonville, FL
The clock was at 7:13 in the fourth quarter and the Chiefs had the ball third-and-15 on the KC 35, trailing 20-10. Mahomes hit Tyreek Hill on a 44-yard pass on the ensuing play. That was the play of the game. It was like a boxer landing a left hook. The 49ers took one to the jaw and staggered against the ropes and never recovered from the blow.
That's today's game. The 2014 NFC title game is an even better example. Closing out games is difficult. Defense doesn't win championships as it once did.

Sean from Long Beach, NY
Vic, did the 49ers try to play around their quarterback?
It was obvious from the start. Kyle Shanahan saw the edge the Chiefs had at quarterback and strategized to soften it. His plan almost worked. What the Chiefs did to the 49ers is what I envisioned the Packers doing to the 49ers, which is to say over-matching the 49ers at the quarterback position. The difference is the Chiefs stayed within 10 points; the Packers got blown away early.

K.J. from Minneapolis, MN
Edward's comments (in Monday's column) reminded me just how far the NFL has to go regarding hiring coaches of color. Why do you think coaches are predominantly white and what can the NFL do to address that in a meaningful way?
The assistant coaching ranks continue to swell with minority coaches and, in time, that will spill over into the head coaching ranks. If there's an issue, it's this: Minority coaches aren't swelling the ranks of NFL offensive coordinators, and teams tend to hire head coaches from the offensive side of the ball. Does a prejudice exist when it comes to hiring offensive coordinators? That's the question that needs to be answered.

Ben from Evanston, IL
If the Smiths and Gary are the same player, would trading one or more of them be a legitimate option?
Za'Darius Smith would bring the Packers a one and more in a trade, and that would allow the Packers to plug in Rashan Gary. Here are the problems with trading Smith: 1) He's due a $9.5 million roster bonus on 3-20, so the trade would have to be executed prior to paying that bonus or Smith's dead money would be Nutsville. 2) It's unknown if Gary is the player the Packers think he is? I stand by my initial reaction when the Packers drafted Gary and Darnell Savage. It struck me as odd after signing two pass-rushers and a safety in free agency the Packers would spend first-round picks on a pass-rusher and a safety.

Adam from Denver, CO
How did the 49ers structure Jimmy Garoppolo's contract in such a way where there is little dead money in the upcoming years?
They paid him a whopping $28.8 million roster bonus in 2018. I call it pre-paying on your cap and it makes total sense for a stinky team that's rebuilding, lacks star players and big contracts and needs to get to the cap floor. In a way, it's mortgaging your present to provide for your future. If he was a dud, they'd have the room to go get another guy. If he was a home run, they'd have the room to surround him with good players.

Gary from Belle Meade, NJ
Mahomes takes some extremely deep drops, which seem to work to his benefit to buy time to hit deep routes. Why don't more quarterbacks do this?
The deeper the drop, the longer the pass. A lot of quarterbacks don't have the arm strength to drop nine yards and still hit the deep out. Mahomes is a special talent. He can do it all. He has a great arm, great legs, great instincts and a resolute football personality. The 1970's game was a deep-drop era. I remember Bradshaw taking punter-like drops, but he could still flick the ball downfield to Swann and Stallworth and do it with an easy throwing motion. I doubt Drew Brees could've played in that bump-and-run era. He doesn't have the arm strength to play that deep-drop, throw-it-deep game.

William from Reading, UK
Vic, are the 49ers a good QB away from winning it all?
I think the ACL cost Garoppolo some mobility. Can he get it back? I think he needs to recover that mobility to be the big-play quarterback every team needs.

David from Janesville, WI
Vic, you referenced big, tough guys that are hard to move for 3-4 defensive ends. If the Packers expand or rotate their roster in that area, is this a good year for depth in the draft?
Any draft is good for finding those kinds of players. Lawrence Guy and Mike Pennel are examples. Defensive tackles that can't rush the passer offer a deep pool for 3-4 teams, as does the pool of tweener pass-rushers that can be moved to outside linebacker. That's why I favor the 3-4 over the 4-3; it provides a deeper pool of talent.

David from Madison, WI
How much of a player's success is putting him in a position to succeed?
It's of critical importance to use a player in a way that maximizes his talent. It would be an outrage to use Aaron Donald as a two-gapper.

Jack from Jacksonville, FL
I really thought this was the year for Tony Boselli to get in the Hall of Fame. Next year is not looking good. When is the next realistic opportunity for Tony to make it in?
Faneca is the problem now. It appears he's ahead of Tony in the offensive linemen pecking order.

Daniel from Richmond, TX
Vic, the answer to the middle linebacker problem is not to abandon the development of a highly drafted pass rusher.
So, stand pat, continue Gary's development by using him on a part-time basis until opportunity and his growth allow for him to be plugged in full time. That's a sound football approach to take.

Bob from Kennesaw, GA
Should the Packers be looking to spend a second or third-round pick on a wide receiver, or should they try to find value later on?
The Packers are picking so low in the order I won't place a position restriction on them. The second and third rounds are where the run on receivers occurred last year. Please, don't perseverate on wide receivers. It's not the problem Packers fans think it is.

Bill from Sheboygan, WI
What are your thoughts on Lazard?
I like him. He's a big possession-type receiver. He reminds me of Keenan McCardell, who was a 12th-round pick.

Eric from Hudson, WI
Vic, that’s two years in a row with incorrect Super Bowl predictions. How old is your blog now?
About 20 years.

Aiden from Jacksonville, FL
Why do Khan and his executives talk down to us and treat us as though we are expendable? I guess because we are.
Your question struck a nerve with me. I struggled to think of an answer. The best I can offer is I'm sorry this is happening. I feel your fear and hurt. The Colts left as Baltimore slept. Maybe that was merciful.

Scott from Bozeman, MT
You are so correct about the halftime show. I have three young daughters and I am so disappointed in how the NFL objectified women. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised the halftime show is a joke. Now I know.
I never offered an opinion on the halftime show. I try to avoid it because I'm not a song-and-dance kind of guy. The halftime shows are for the other half of the audience. I just ignore it.

Conrad from Oklahoma City, OK
Last year you mentioned Andy Reid teams were soft. Did they win this year despite that or did something change?
The Chiefs were No. 23 in rushing and No. 26 against the run. They were getting spanked by the Texans and the Titans were pounding the ball on them, just as the 49ers were with a 6.4 yards-per-carry average. I think the answer to your question is Mahomes tilts the field. The Chiefs overwhelmed their postseason opponents with offense. That's today's game and you can play it if you have one of those quarterbacks. If you don't have one of those guys, you better do more than one thing.

Don from Richmond, KY
Vic, the Jaguars just announced the team will play 25 percent of their regular season "home" games in London next season. This news concerns me greatly. I was born in Jacksonville and have been an extremely passionate fan of the Jaguars since their inaugural season in 1995. I am angry and disappointed, but I mostly worry the Jaguars might not stay in Jacksonville. Lamping and Kahn say the team isn't moving, but I wonder what will happen if the most ardent fans become disenchanted with the team. Please share your thoughts on this matter, Vic.
Give me four-and-four and share the team with London and I'll sign on the dotted line right now.

Brent from Waunakee, WI
What do you think of Leroy Butler's Hall of Fame chances?
A lot of safeties have been elected in recent years and Charles Woodson could push Butler aside next year.

Dave from Chicago, IL
Vic, do you see Green Bay going WR with the first-round pick, or a run-stuffer and then WR in round two?
You're identifying needs. I think you should include tackle as a need.

Nick from Owego, NY
Why isn't Penn State and Pitt playing each other any more? I was told it had to do with money. Is that true? They were the best games!
Joe Paterno killed the series because Pitt killed his idea for an eastern all-sports conference. Paterno wanted Pitt to leave the Big East, which was a basketball-only conference back then, and then join Penn State in threatening to drop Syracuse and Boston College from the schedule if they didn't also leave the Big East and join Paterno's conference. Pitt declined Paterno's request, stayed in the Big East for basketball and remained an independent in football. Paterno is dead, Penn State is in the Big Ten, Pitt is in the ACC and football fans in Pa. continue to be denied what once was the biggest game of the year. I blame Pitt on this one. They lacked vision.

Sandy from Texas
The overwhelming indigenous Indian populations support the Washington mascot and symbol. They see it as a source of pride. If the people that are represented by the symbol support it, time to let it go, chief.
A new survey says your information is baloney. A Cal-Berkley study claims 57 percent of Native Americans who strongly identify with being Native Americans are "deeply insulted by caricatures of Native American culture." My opinion on the matter was shaped by an email I received from a boy in the Oneida Nation when I was penning this column for packers.com. He touched me with his words describing the hurt and shame he's endured. If I owned a team that employed references to Native Americans for the purpose of marketing the team, I would end that practice immediately. Leave it to Stanford to lead the way. Fifty years ago they changed because their students knew it was the right thing to do. Don't we owe our Native Americans at least that much for what they gave us?

"Ask Vic" will publish on Monday and Thursday through the offseason.

Chris from Bozeman, MT
Curious if you still stand by your assessment of Reid being a better offensive coordinator than a head coach?
I congratulate Andy Reid on his victory.

Joe from Rhinelander, WI
Moving forward, what do you see from the 49ers and Chiefs the next 2-3 years?
The Chiefs have a star quarterback who should make them the team to beat in the AFC for the next several years. The 49ers have a dominant roster that should make them a Super Bowl contender for the next several years.

Anthony from Milwaukee, WI
I guess the 49ers need something more than window dressing.
Got it.

Edward from Canton, SD
Congratulations to the KC Chiefs, their fans and especially to Andy Reid. It's a shame the Packers were basically forced by the NFL to hire Ray Rhodes as head coach after Mike Holmgren left. l think Andy and No. 4 would have won at least one if not more Super Bowls together.
I don't like the way that sounds.

Bill from Sheboygan, WI
What are your thoughts on the Super Bowl?
A great quarterback came to life at crunch time and two pass interference penalties decided the championship game in a season defined by pass interference.

Dejan from Kitchener, Ontario
Big fan of your work, Vic, but when you suggested Rashan Gary move to ILB, you had me a bit worried. He would be a terrible ILB. When was the last time you saw a 6-5, 280 ILB? I hope Tony or your scout friends can knock some sense back into you.
Levon Kirkland is listed as having played at 275 and it was widely reported he was pushing 300 pounds for much of his career, and he was still covering tight ends deep downfield. Matt Millen made the move from defensive tackle to inside linebacker. I have to believe, according to his draft profile and reputation, Gary is more athletic than Millen. If you can play outside, you can play inside, provided you have the size to bang with the big boys, and Gary does. It would be a way to get arguably the most athletic player on the defense on the field. I'm just trying to make all the pieces fit and that's difficult to do because there are too many of the same piece; the Packers signed and/or drafted the same guy three times. You don't make a guy the 12th overall pick and ask him to eat blocks as a 3-4 DE. The Packers could switch to a 4-3 and Gary would fit perfectly as a RDE, but the Smith Bros. aren't 4-3 OLBs. You didn't sign them to cover downfield; they're pass rushers. The best I can come up with is moving Gary inside.

Ron from Boise, ID
So much conversation about the 2020 UFAs. The Packers cap in 2021 does not look healthy. Forgetting this year's free agents, next year we have Bakhtiari, Clark and Jones. Care to suggest how that will play out?
The Packers have plenty of contracts that can be restructured, beginning with Za'Darius Smith's. At this point in time, the question is: Will the Packers restructure contracts and create cap room to be aggressive in free agency, or was last year's aggressiveness in free agency a one-year thing and the Packers will return to a more cautious cap approach? We'll have an answer to that question within the next month.

Bob from Venice, FL
Is it safe to assume the team's opponents next season will run the ball until the Packers prove they can stop the run?
The Packers will fix this problem in the offseason. How will they do it? We have to wait for the answer to that question.

Gabriela from Miami, FL
As a down lineman in a 3-4 front, what made Bruce Smith so exceptional?
Talent made him a great player. What I find interesting about Smith's career is I believe he spent it playing out of position. He was better suited to play RDE in a 4-3. Marv Levy knew that so the Bills didn't make Smith two-gap, as would be expected of a conventional 3-4 defensive end. You don't waste great athletes on eating blocks. Smith was permitted to penetrate and disrupt in a gap-control defense and, in my opinion, that made Smith a bad fit for the Bills. That was the most talented defense in the AFC, maybe in the league, and they got mauled in every Super Bowl they played. They couldn't stop the run. Why? Because they had defenders running all over the field, looking like they were on skates. Sound familiar? The Texans have tried the same thing with J.J. Watt and they've suffered the same fate; No. 25 against the run. The 3-4 is a light-in-the-pants defense that has to be executed in a particular way for it to be successful. It requires defensive linemen who eat blocks and hold the point of attack. Hey, somebody has to do the heavy lifting, right? They don't have to be great athletes, just physical and tough. I'm fond of saying 3-4 defensive ends are 4-3 defensive tackles that can't rush the passer.

Ben from El Paso, TX
We know where you stand with respect to Washington, but what are your thoughts on Kansas City and their use of Native American symbolism?
It's kind of pukey, but at least it doesn't refer to skin color. What I find so ironic and outrageous is for a long time Washington's training camp was in Carlisle, Pa., home of the Carlisle Indian School made famous by Jim Thorpe and the true Carlisle Indians.

Tom from Bismarck, ND
Vic, you are absolutely correct, sir. Receivers are, in fact, a dime a dozen. However, the mock drafts are filled with rumors and suggestions of the Packers going whole hog on these guys. Might I suggest we keep drafting defense, defense and more defense. Do you realize the Packers have had the second-best defense on the field in every significant game they've played over the past 25 years. Let that sink in for a second.
In last spring's draft, the first wide receiver wasn't selected until the 25th overall pick. Beginning with the 51st overall pick, eight were selected in the next 16 picks: A.J. Brown, Mecole Hardman, D.K. Metcalf, Diontae Johnson. The Packers passed on last year's treasure trove of wide receivers, but not to worry, this year's crop is thought to be even deeper. Maybe they'll pass again. Dime a dozen.

Bill from Merrill, WI
You sound like just another loser lib who can't find it in them to support our great President Trump and our booming stock market. Liberal gun-hater losers like you will never understand what it is to be a decent, honest, rural person. People who live in the cities are whiny losers! Try coming to real America some time, liberal loser! Woops, hang on, I need to take another handful of opioids and find someone to blame for all the feelings I have but never learned how to process.
OK.

Nick from Owego, NY
Do you think high school football will someday be gone? I grew up in a rural area and just learned due to lack of participation at my old school's team they combined three neighboring-school football programs into one.
It already has gone away as I knew it as a kid, when my high school/hometown team was the most important thing in my life. Participation is down. Schools are forfeiting the remainders of seasons because they don't have enough players to field a competitive team. Schools are leaving regional and state leagues to play independent schedules, along with other schools that want to play a less intense brand of football, and they're traveling great distances, even out of state, to do it. What we're seeing is the equivalent of the death of the local boxing club. Once upon a time, they were common in the mill towns and big-city neighborhoods. I worked at a newspaper that had a boxing club in its circulation area. The guy who ran it reminded me of Burgess Meredith in "Rocky" and he'd call me every week to tell me how his fighters did in recent bouts. I wouldn't know where to find a boxing club now. I think high school football will continue to merge and shrink, until it reaches a low-water mark of schools willing to pay the cost and risk the danger of liability. At that point, I think it'll stabilize. It'll be played mainly by players of elite talent. At that point, it'll be dead because it won't be a source of community spirit, it'll be a talent show for college football.

Steve from Hudson, WI
What is a successful season for an NFL team? Does not winning the Super Bowl make it a failure?
I think a season should be separated into two parts, the regular season and the postseason. The goal heading into the regular season should be to make it into the postseason. When that is accomplished, the goal becomes to win the Super Bowl. If a team makes it into the postseason but doesn't win the Super Bowl, it succeeded at one and failed at the other. Only one team finishes the season 2-0.

​Chris from Kitakyushu, Japan
"NFL Gamepass," the NFL's online streaming service for international fans, stopped working internationally with three minutes left in the Super Bowl. How can a league that so badly wants to expand internationally allow something like that to occur?
At least you got to see the halftime show.